The word "约瑟夫" is formed through a process of phonetic transliteration, specifically to represent the sound of the foreign name "Joseph" in Chinese. It is constructed by selecting three pre-existing Chinese characters, 约 (yuē), 瑟 (sè), and 夫 (fū), whose combined pronunciation closely approximates the English name. This method prioritizes sound over meaning, as the individual characters' original meanings (which involve concepts like "appointment", "a type of string instrument", and "man") are irrelevant to the name's function; they serve purely as phonetic symbols to bridge the gap between the two languages.